But the international community couldn’t ignore the tally of 70 hijacked ships and more than $150 million in ransom payments. The UN Security Council went so far as to authorize countries to pursue pirates onto Somali soil if need be.

Plying the waters off Somalia, would likely build on Japan’s successful past efforts to help combat Malacca Strait piracy through information-sharing, as the Monitor reported in 2006. And it can train in the kind of mission that is old hat to the United States and a number of NATO members.